The present invention relates to musical wind instruments (also called woodwind instruments) and especially to wind instruments that are made out materials that are subject to wear such as metals and metal alloys.
A typical mechanism of a wind instrument consists of a number of xe2x80x9ckeysxe2x80x9d designed to cover openings or xe2x80x9ctoneholesxe2x80x9d in the body of the instrument, thereby increasing or decreasing the effective length of the tube, changing the pitch of the note sounded. Each unit of the mechanism typically consists of one or more keys, and a certain length of mechanism tubing. Through this mechanism tubing a shaft is passed, itself held in place at its ends by the posts. The shaft may or may not rotate freely, depending on the section of the instrument where it is used, and the maker""s preferences. The shaft serves the function of orienting the keys over the toneholes, and also provides an axle around which the keys may rotate while opening or closing the toneholes.
The keys of the instrument, being moving sections that rub against each other, are subject to wear. The consequence of this wear is lateral play, which may prevent the key from covering the tonehole properly. Also, excessive noise may result as loose keys, no longer perfectly fitted to the shaft, strike each other as the instrument is played.
The rate and amount of wear can be influenced by a number of factors including the grade of materials used in construction, the body chemistry of the player, and the external environment. However, by far the most common cause is friction between the keys. Musical wind instrument mechanisms are typically made from silver or gold, and as these metals are relatively soft, constant rubbing of adjacent keys leads to rapid wear.
The usual solution to this wear problem that exists in the field today is xe2x80x9cswagingxe2x80x9d, a process that lengthens the mechanism tube by squeezing its outside surface with circular swaging pliers against a supporting shaft inside the tube. This process can damage the outer finish of the tube and repeated swaging can diminish the outer diameter of the mechanism to the point where the change becomes visible. The swaging is above all, only a temporary solution, in effect treating the symptom rather than the cause. Further use of the instrument will inevitably lead to greater wear of the keys despite repeated swaging.
To solve this problem there is a need for a modification of the wind instrument mechanism that would eliminate or substantially reduce the occurrence of friction between adjacent keys.
This invention satisfies the above needs. A novel modification to musical wind instrument mechanism is provided.
The present invention eliminates wear between keys by the use of interface inserts within the mechanism of the musical wind instrument at the areas where different sections of the mechanism come into contact with each other during normal operation of the instrument. The interface inserts could have varying shapes and sizes depending on their location within the instrument. Significantly, the disclosed introduction of the interface inserts does not affect the quality of the sound or ease of operation of the instrument. Furthermore, the disclosed modification reduces the noise made by the keys striking each other as the instrument is being played.